UNIT:
Lesson: 5
Text Title
“Alarm Clock, I am a Black Woman” by Mari Evans
Main Idea
In Alarm Clock, Evans uses the comparison of being startled by her alarm clock to a moment when she abruptly realized she was not welcomed at a drug store counter. Using lines like, “and I woke up…quick…like I did this morning,” Evans helps the reader understand how it might have felt to wander aimlessly into a place only to find she was unwelcome during the time of segregation.
Essential Question
The unit essential questions developed in this lesson are…
- Who is Mari Evans?
- How does culture influence the voice of a poet?
Content Objective
By engaging in this lesson, students will strengthen their ability to…
- The intensity of racism was significant and affected African Americans in unforgettable ways. The use of figurative language, such as an extended metaphor, can relay that message as it provides multiple uses of imagery relating to one subject.
Literacy Objective
By engaging in this lesson, students will strengthen their ability to…
- Identify and analyze literary devices to determine their intended meaning and make complex connections within a text.
Standards Alignment
- Analyze the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in works of literature, including figurative and connotative meanings; analyze the impact of specific word choices on meaning and tone, including analogies or allusions to other texts. (8.RV.3.1)
